I'll Cover You
by Renthead621
Summary: RogerOC story. Takes place pre Rent in high school. Includes MarkOC as well. Not good at summaries, just read. PLEASE. Don't forget to review. I do not own Rent. COMPLETE
1. Chapter 1

"Very good Mr. Davis. Surprisingly." Mr. Wilson said handing Roger his paper.

"Thanks." 15 year old Roger said looking at his A plus paper.

"And Miss McGowan, nice work as usual." he said handing Brianna her paper.

"Thank you Mr. Wilson." the pretty blond said smiling at her A paper.

"OK now, I'm going to split you up into groups of two and I want you to do a little project. It'll be on William Shakespeare's Hamlet. And since Mr. Davis and Miss McGowan have the highest grades in the class, I'd like to see what they can come up with." Mr. Wilson said as Roger and Brianna looked at one another.

"Great." he muttered as class continued. When class was over Brianna approched him.

"Listen Roger, I don't like this any more than you do, but I really want to get a good grade on this so we really need to work hard on it." she said looking up at him.

"Listen Brianna, you write it up and put my name on it, OK? Cool." he siad leaving the class room.

"He is such a jerk." Samantha said walking up to Brianna.

"You're not kidding. But I gotta work with him." she said as the two sophomores left the class room.

"Hi Brianna." Mark Cohen said passing her in the hallway.

"Hi Marky. You're friends with Roger Davis, right?" she asked smiling at him as her pony tail swung as she walked.

"Yeah, our moms are friends. What did he do now?" he asked looking down.

"Nothing. I just have to work on a project with him in Brit Lit and he expects me to do it all myself." she said looking at him.

"I'll talk to him." he said smiling at her.

"Thanks Marky. Do you wanna go to lunch with us?" she asked as he pushed his glasses up on his face.

"Sure." he said following them out of the school.

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"I'm not working with her." Roger said sitting in his room with Mark.

"Roger, Mr. Wilson paired you two for a reason. She's the smartest girl in the sophomore class." he said looking up at him.

"So you work with her and just put my name on it. I know you have a thing for her." Roger said picking up his guitar.

"I don't have a thing for her. But she's nice. Why don't you like her?" Mark asked curiously.

"Because she thinks she knows everything. Yeah, like I want to work on a report about Hamlet with her. Not quite." Roger said plugging his amp in.

"Well Mr. Wilson said you have to so unless you wanna flunk Brit Lit, you gotta do it." he told him opening up his book.

"Whatever." Roger said starting to play his guitar.

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"Roger, I wanted to talk to you about our report..." Brianna started when Roger interrupted her.

"Yeah, listen I'll meet you after school at my house to work on it, OK?" he said looking down at her.

"I was thinking we could meet at Mark Cohen's house. He said he would serve as a buffer. You know, since you are so difficult..." she said before being interrupted by him again.

"I'm difficult. You think just because you're every teachers pet that you're the best thing this school has ever seen." he argued looking down at her.

"Well at least I show up for class every once in a while and do some work. All you do is cut class and show up for tests." she said aggressively putting her hand on her hip.

"You're just jealous that I don't have to work so hard to get good grades." he yelled as they stood in the middle of the hallway.

"Oh yeah, I'm really jealous. You act like a jerk all the time and you think just because you're cute that everyone will just bend to your every will, well not me. How about I do my part of the paper and you do yours and whatever we get, we get?" she yelled back as everyone looked at them.

"Whatever." he yelled as she walked away from him.

"Fine." she yelled going into her class room.

"What the hell was that?" Mark asked approaching Roger.

"She is such a bitch." Roger yelled as he left to go to his next class.

"She's really nice once you get to know her." Mark said. "It's just that she knows what she wants and she'll do whatever it takes to get it. Kind of like how you are with your music."

"Don't even say something like that." Roger said. "We are nothing alike." He said walking away. Mark just shook his head and followed down the hall.

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"You think Roger Davis is cute?" Sam asked as Brianna sat at her desk.

"What?" she asked looking up at her confused.

"You told Roger Davis he's cute." she said smiling at her.

"No I didn't." she said taking her books out of her book bag.

"Oh yes you did. Half the school heard you." Sam said laughing.

"Oh my God, I did?" she asked looking up at her.

"Um, yeah you did." she said smiling.

"Oh man." she said laying her head on the desk.

"So do you?" Sam asked looking at her.

"Do I what?" she asked muffled because her head was on the desk.

"Think Roger's cute?" she asked looking at her.

"I don't know. I mean, yeah I guess. In that pain in the ass sort of way. But we have nothing in common and he's such a jerk." she said looking up at Sam.

"Yeah he is kind of cute, isn't he?" Sam said smiling at her.

"Sam." Brianna said smiling at her.

"OK I'm sorry, he's a jerk and a pain in the ass." Sam said trying to be serious.

"He is." she said opening her book.

"And you have to work with him." Sam said smiling.

"Don't remind me." she said as the bell rang and class began.


	2. Chapter 2

"Hamlet was a narcissist with mommy issues." Roger yelled sitting in Mark's bedroom with Brianna and Mark.

"Oh yeah, you would say that. Anyone who doesn't rebel with every ounce of his being to you has to have mommy issues, right?" she yelled back pacing the room.

"Well think about it, he was just pissed at Claudius because he married his mother before he could." Roger said putting his feet up onto Mark's bed.

"You are disturbed." she said looking at him as Roger leaned on the back legs of the chair.

"Yeah well... Oh shit." he started before falling backwards.

"Oh my God, Roger are you OK?" Brianna asked rushing to him.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just feel like a retard, that's all." he said starting to laugh.

"Did you hit your head or something?" she asked helping him up.

"No." he said smiling at her.

"Too bad. Maybe it would have knocked some sense into you." she said as they all started laughing.

"Yeah well, sorry to disappoint you. Next time I'll try to have better aim." he said picking the chair up.

"Um, I gotta go. My little sister's gonna be home from the babysitter in a little while and I have to start dinner." she said looking down before putting her books in her book bag.

"Yeah, I should go too. Thanks Mark. I'll see you tomorrow?" he asked looking at Mark.

"Yeah, I'll see you guys tomorrow." he said looking up from his book.

"Can I walk you home? I gotta go that way anyway." Roger asked looking down at her.

"Sure, I'd like that." she said propping her book bag up higher on her shoulder.

"Sorry about fighting with you all the time. I just like to piss people off." Roger said shoving his hands in his pockets as they walked to Brianna's house.

"Apparently you're good at it." she said laughing as her pony tail swung back and forth as they walked.

"Ha ha. So what music do you listen to?" he asked taking Mark's advice.

"Classic rock. You know Pink Floyd, Led Zepplin, The Who, Queen, The Doors, stuff like that." she said looking up at him.

"No way. I love classic rock." he said smiling down at her.

"Really? I always pegged you as a total metal head." she said smiling up at him.

"Yeah, I mean I like heavy metal, but I was raised on classic rock. My dad loves it." he said starting to laugh.

"Well, well, well Roger Davis has something in common with Brianna McGowan. Stop the presses." she said laughing.

"There might be hope for you after all." Roger said as they approached Brianna's house.

"Now who's trying to be funny? I gotta go. I'll see you at school tomorrow." she said smiling up at him as a station wagon pulled up to the house and a 4 year old got out. She ran up to Brianna and Brianna picked her up and brought her in the house.

"Brianna, who is that boy you were with?" Bethany asked as Brianna put the lights on in the house.

"That's Roger. I'm doing a report with him at Mark's house." Brianna said putting her down.

"Do you like him?" Bethany asked looking up at her.

"We're just doing a report in school together munchkin. That's it." she said smiling at her as she went into the kitchen.

"He likes you." Bethany said hopping up onto the chair at the table.

"How do you know?" Brianna asked going over to her.

"Because he was looking at you all googley and stuff." Bethany said laughing as Brianna picked her up again.

"Oh yeah?" she said tickling her.

"Roger is Brianna's boyfriend." Bethany sung teasingly as Brianna hugged her.

"Come on munchkin, I have to start dinner before mom gets home." Brianna said putting Bethany down and going to the stove.

"What time is mommy coming home tonight?" Bethany asked sitting on the chair.

"I don't know. She said she would call if she had to pull a double again." Brianna said taking the chicken cutlet out of the fridge.

"How come mommy has to work so much?" Bethany asked looking up at her.

"Because dad left and now mom has to take care of us by herself. That's why you have to help me, OK? Go make sure your room is clean and all of your toys are out of the living room. Thank you." Brianna said starting to make dinner.

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"Hey Brianna, do you wanna walk to school together?" Roger asked the next morning.

"Roger, what are you doing here?" Brianna asked looking up at her moms bedroom window.

"I just thought we could walk to school together. You know, talk about music or something." he said looking down at her.

"Where's Mark?" she asked looking up at him.

"He's sick. His mom thinks it's the flu or something, so we have to find someplace else to do our project today." he said as they started to walk to school.

"Well we can do it at my house. My mom's gotta work late and my little sister's not gonna be home until 5, so we can get a lot done." she said smiling up at him.

"OK, that sounds cool. My sister always has her friends over and she can be a pain." he said smiling down at her.

"It's settled then." she said as they continued to walk to school. They talked about classic rock and their report.

"Either you like The Who or Led Zepplin, you can't like both." Roger argued looking down at her.

"Well I like both. Is there a law against it or something?" she asked looking up at him.

"Um, yeah. You either like Plant and Page or Daltrey and Townsend." he said as she started laughing at him.

"You get really worked up over music, don't you?" she asked as he started laughing at himself.

"I guess you can say that." he said as they approached the school.

"OK so I'll see you later." she said smiling up at him.

"Yeah, I'll see you later." he said smiling as she walked away.

"You walked to school with Roger Davis?" Sam asked smiling at her.

"Yeah, he came to my house this morning and asked if I wanted to walk with him." she said entering the school.

"And?" Sam asked looking up at her.

"And nothing. We're friends. We were talking about music. We like the same kind of music." Brianna said as they walked to first period.

"He likes classic rock? I would have thought for sure he'd like heavy metal." she said smiling at her.

"He likes both but his dad raised him listening to classic rock." she said smiling at her.

"That's cool." Sam said as the teacher came into the class room. "Where's Mark?" she asked looking around.

"He has the flu." Brianna said taking her books out.

"So where are you gonna do your project?" Sam whispered leaning over to her.

"My house. Since mom's at work and Bethany comes home at 5, we can work in peace and quiet." she whispered back before directing her attention to the teacher.

"What happened yesterday?" Sam asked smiling at Brianna as class started.

"Nothing. We just came to an understanding." Brianna whispered.

"Oh really?" Sam said raising her eyebrows. "You like Roger Davis, don't you?"

"Just because we can now tolerate each other doesn't mean I like him like that." Brianna whispered.

"Yeah ok. Keep telling yourself that." Sam said laughing.

I want to thank BohemianGirl06 for all of her help. You have not only been a friend but a partner in writing this. Thank you so much.


	3. Chapter 3

"Shakespear is such an ass." Roger said sitting back on the couch.

"How can you say that?" Brianna asked looking up at him.

"Why the hell would he drag on for 5 acts what he could have just did in 1. No fuss, no muss. Just wack everyone." he said folding his arms around his chest.

"Roger, it's not The Godfather, it's Hamlet." Brianna said laughing as there was a honk outside. "Oh shit, Bethany's home." she said getting up and rushing to the door.

"Hi Brie." Bethany called out as Brianna picked her up.

"Hi munchkin. Did you have fun at the baby sitter today?" she asked looking at her as Roger got off of the couch.

"Yeah, is this Roger?" she asked looking up at him.

"Yeah it is. Bethany this is my friend Roger. Roger this is my little sister Bethany." Brianna said putting Bethany down.

"Hi Bethany. It's nice to meet you." he said smiling at her.

"I gotta start dinner now. Can you keep an eye on her a second, please?" she asked looking up at him.

"Sure. Come on Bethany, you can help us with our report. You'll proabably do better than me and Brianna." he laughed as Brianna looked back at him and stuck her tongue out at him.

"Are you Brianna's boyfriend?" Bethany asked looking up at Roger.

"No, we're just friends." he told her sitting back on the couch.

"But you wanna be her boyfriend, don't you?" she teased looking up at him.

"No. we're just friends." he said again as she giggled.

"You said that already." she told him smiling at him.

"Bethany Ann McGowan, are you torturing Roger?" Brianna asked coming back into the living room.

"No." she said innocently as Roger laughed.

"I gotta go anyway. I'll see you tomorrow." he said gathering his books up and putting them in his book bag.

"Sorry about Bethany. She can be a little witch sometimes." she said laughing as she walked Roger to the door.

"That's OK. I have a little sister too, remember?" he asked looking at her as she opened the door.

"Thanks. I'll see you tomorrow." she said smiling up at him as Mrs. McGowan pulled into the driveway.

"Bye." he said leaving as Mrs. McGowan got out of her car.

"Who was that Brianna?"she asked as Roger walked down the block.

"Roger Davis. We have a Brit Lit project that we have to do together and we were doing it at Mark Cohen's but Mark has the flu, so we had to do it here." she said walking back into the house.

"I don't want him here when no one's home." she said going inside.

"Mommy." Bethany called out seeing her mother come home from work.

"But mom, we have a project due and we can't work at his house with his sister and her friends there, and Mark is sick, so we have to do it here." Brianna said arguing with her.

"Yeah well, I don't want that boy trying to take advantage of you while no one's home." she argued picking Bethany up.

"Roger is my friend. He would never take advantage of me." Brianna argued as Mrs. McGowan went into the kitchen.

"Well I don't like you having boys in the house. Especially Roger Davis." she said putting Bethany down.

"You don't even know Roger, mom." Brianna said following her.

"Oh I know boys like him. He wears a leather jacket, listens to heavy metal music and thinks because he's good looking women are gonna fall all over him. Your father was the type." she said standing at the counter.

"But Roger's not dad. Roger's my friend. I don't know why you're freaking out about it." Brianna asked standing in the doorway of the kitchen.

"I'm freaking out because I come home and learn that my teenaged daughter has been having a teenaged boy over while I'm not home. What would you think?" she asked looking at her.

"Mom, you're never home. You're always at work. When am I supposed to have friends? When am I supposed to have a life? But no, I have to live yours." she yelled before running out of the house.

"Brianna Michelle McGowan, get back here." Mrs. McGowan yelled but Brianna just kept on running. She didn't know where she was going, all she knew was that she had to get out of her house. Ever since her dad left a year earler, she had to take care of Bethany and the house while her mother worked. She was a nurse at the hospital nearby and had started picking up extra shifts to help support herself and her two daughters. Brianna wasn't like a normal girl. She was smart, mature and didn't have much time for her friends or dating, but Roger made her feel normal for the first time in a year. Brianna ran to the park around the corner from their house and just sat on the swing crying.

"Brianna?" Roger called out hearing her as he walked by.

"Roger, what are you doing here?" she asked wiping her eyes.

"I like to walk around sometimes. My parents fight a lot and I can't stand the noise." he told her sitting next to her.

"I'm sorry Roger." she said reaching out for his arm.

"Hey it's cool. You're lucky, at least your dad had the decency to leave. You don't have to deal with the fighting all the time." he said trying to play it cool.

"Oh yeah, really lucky. My dad leaves and my mom has to work every minute of the day to support us so we don't lose the house because my dad's a screw up. I have to raise my little sister and keep the house clean and get good grades. Well I'm sick of it. I just wanna be a normal teenaged girl." she said starting to cry again.

"I'm sorry Brianna." he said quietly as he got up to comfort her. "I didn't mean it like that." he said taking her in his arms.

"Roger I just wanna be normal." she said crying into his chest.

"I know." he whispered as she cried.

"I'm so sorry Roger. I didn't mean to freak out like that." she said quickly pulling away wiping her eyes.

"It's OK. That's what friends are for, right?" he said looking down at her.

"Are we? I mean, are we really friends?" she asked looking up at him.

"Of course. Why would you ask me that?" he asked looking at her confused.

"Please don't tell anyone, OK? No one knows what a mess my life is. I mean, sure they know my dad left us, but no one knows that we're close to losing the house." she said holding back tears.

"OK. I won't. I won't tell anyone." he said still holding her in his arms.

"Thank you Roger. I really appreciate it." she said as he smiled at her.

"What are friends for, huh?" he said wiping her tear stained face with his hand.

"Thank you Roger." she whispered as he leaned down to kiss her. The kiss was slow and tender. He held her face in his hands and kept caressing her cheeks with his thumbs. She held the back of his jacket tight kissing him back.

"Mhmm Roger." she whispered as he leaned his forhead against hers.

"Are you OK?" he asked still caressing her face.

"Yeah, I'm great." she said as he leaned down to kiss her again.


	4. Chapter 4

"Thank you for walking me home Roger. I really appreciate it." she said looking up at him as they approached the McGowan house.

"No problem. Do you want me to call you later?" he asked holding her hand.

"Yeah, I'd like that. Just gimme a little while, OK? I have to talk to my mom." she said as he took her in his arms.

"OK. Good luck." he said leaning down to kiss her.

"Thanks. You too." she said smiling up at him.

"OK. Bye Brie." he whispered as Mrs. McGowan opened the door.

"Brianna, can I talk to you inside?" she said quietly interrupting them.

"I'm coming mom. I'll talk you you later." she said smiling at him before turning around and going in the house.

"Hi Mrs. McGowan." Roger said smiling down at her.

"Hi Roger. I need to talk to Brianna, you can call her later." she said looking up at him before going in the house.

"Mom, I'm sorry I left like that." she said looking at her mother.

"Are you dating Roger Davis now?" Mrs. McGowan asked with her hand on her hip.

"I tell you how over whelmed I feel and run out of the house upset and all you can focus on is the fact that I might be dating Roger? You are sick mom." she yelled running up the stairs.

"Brianna, I'm sorry." she said going up the stairs after her.

"Mom, you don't get it. I just want to be a normal teenaged girl. I wanna have friends and a boy friend like other girls have. Instead I have to be here for Bethany and make dinner every night and clean the house and do the laundry." she yelled starting to cry.

"Well Brianna someone has to work to save the house and pay the bills." Mrs. McGowan yelled back standing in the doorway of Brianna's room.

"I know mom. But why is it dad's a screw up and I have to pay for it?" Brianna asked looking up at her.

"I know honey, it's not fair. It's not fair to any of us, but we all have to pull together like a family." Mrs. McGowan said sitting on Brianna's bed.

"Mom, I just want to be a normal girl." Brianna said looking at her.

"Does being a normal girl include dating Roger Davis?" Mrs. McGowan asked looking up at her.

"Mom, I like Roger. He's nice and he's my friend. I can talk to him." Brianna told her smiling at the mention of Roger's name.

"How long has this been going on?" she asked looking over at her.

"He just kissed me tonight. I went to the park and he was there too. We started talking and he kissed me." she told her smiling at her.

"How was it?" Mrs. McGowan asked smiling back.

"It was really nice. He is so sweet mom. I like him." she said looking down at her.

"How about I have your Aunt Kelly take care of Bethany when I'm at work sometimes so you can go out with Roger and your friends?" Mrs. McGowan asked as Brianna looked up at her.

"Are you serious? Oh my God, mom thank you." she said leaning over to hug her.

"Just have fun, OK sweetie?" she said smiling at her as the phone rang.

"Mom, that's Roger. Can I talk to him?" Brianna asked smiling at her.

"Sure sweetie. Just come down when you're done so you can have some dinner." Mrs. McGowan said before leaving the room as Brianna reached for the phone.

"Hi Roger." Brianna said as Mrs. McGowan closed the door.

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"Hi Baby." Roger said as he and Mark picked Brianna up at her house.

"Hi Roger." she said as he leaned down to kiss her. "Hi Mark." she said looking at Mark.

"Hey Brianna. Nice to see you and Roger are getting along now." he said laughing.

"Yeah well, we kind of bonded over some things." she said smiling up at Roger.

"OK. But you guys aren't gonna be making goo goo eyes at each other all the time, are you?" he asked as they walked to school.

"Maybe." Roger said with his arm around Brianna.

"Oh great." Mark said as Roger and Brianna laughed.

"So my mom said she was gonna have my aunt take care of Bethany sometimes while she worked so I could hang out with you, but you and I can't be alone in my house anymore since we're dating now." Brianna said looking up at him.

"That's OK. I'm just glad things worked out with your mom. My mom said we could finish our project at my house. She's gonna be there so your mom doesn't have to worry." he told her smiling down at her.

"You're not gonna be fighting with me anymore, are you?" she asked laughing at him.

"Just because you're my girlfriend it doesn't mean I can't still have a little fun with you." he said pulling her close.

"Well then don't expect me not to yell at you now that you're my boyfriend." she said smiling up at him.

"I like when you yell at me." he said kissing her head.

"You must, you make me do it a lot." she said giggling at him.

"Oh geez, this is gonna be fun." Mark said rolling his eyes.


	5. Chapter 5

"Now for Mr. Davis and Miss McGowan's report on Hamlet." Mr. Wilson said as Roger and Brianna smiled at each other and got up to the front of the class. They presented their report and received an A plus. When the class bell rang they left the classroom.

"Baby, we did it." Roger said picking Brianna up by her waist kissing her in the hallway.

"Of course we did." she said laughing as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"We have to do something really awesome to celebrate." he said kissing her again.

"How about we take Marky out to lunch?" she said smiling at him.

"I was thinking just you and me." he said kissing her again.

"But Roger, we go out to lunch all the time alone. Mark's starting to feel neglected." she said as he put her down.

"Oh I wouldn't worry about Mark." he told her with a smirk.

"What do you mean?" she asked smiling up at him.

"Have you noticed anything between him and Sam?" he asked smiling down at her.

"No way." she said holding his arms.

"They're getting pretty close." he told her smiling

"That is so great." she said throwing her arms around his neck to hold him close. "Oh my God, Roger we should go to lunch with them." she suggested pulling back to look at him.

"Oh no. I am not double dating with Mark and Sam." he said looking down at her.

"How come? It'll be so cool." she said smiling at him.

"I am not ready to see Mark making out with anyone." he said as she started laughing.

"But it's OK for him to see us making out all the time?" she asked laughing at him.

"Well yeah." he said leaning down to kiss her again.

"You are evil." she said smiling up at him.


	6. Chapter 6

"Mom, Roger's here. I'll be back later." Brianna called out as Mrs. McGowan came down the stairs.

"Hang on, I wanted to take some pictures of you two first." she said as Roger smiled up at her.

"Hi Mrs. McGowan." he said as Brianna buried her face in his chest.

"Oh come on mom, we're gonna be late." she said as he caressed her hair.

"You two look so adorable, I just wanted a picture of you. Is that so bad?" she asked smiling at them.

"Come on Baby, smile." Roger said as she looked up at him.

"You can't be serious." she said smiling at him.

"Why not? You look beautiful and your mom wants a picture of you. I want one too." he said kissing her head.

"Thank you Roger. She hates pictures being taken of herself." Mrs. McGowan said smiling at them.

"That's because I always look so plain in them." she said turning around to face her mother.

"You do not. You look beautiful." Roger said with his arm around her.

"OK now smile you two." Mrs McGowan said holding the camera up to her eye.

"OK mom, can we go now? The Cohen's party starts in a half an hour." Brianna asked looking up at her mother.

"Yes, now you may go. Do you have the gift we bought?" she asked looking at them.

"Yeah, I got it. Bye mom. I'll see you later." she said kissing her mom on the cheek.

"Bye Mrs. McGowan."Roger said smiling at her.

"Have fun you two." she said as they rushed out the door.

"Sorry about that. My mom has been getting really lame lately. You know, since I turned 16 and everything." Brianna said smiling up at him.

"I don't think she's being lame. I think it's nice. I mean, my parents couldn't care less. They're so wrapped up in pissing each other off they hardly realize we're still dating." he said with his arm around her as they walked to the Cohen's house.

"I know. I'm sorry." she said looking up at him.

"Forget it. I don't care what they say. I love you Brie." he said stopping in the middle of the sidewalk and sweeping her into his arms.

"I love you too Roger." she said leaning up to kiss him.

"Now let's go, we're gonna be late." he said smiling down at her.

"OK." she said smiling at him as they continued on to the Cohen house.

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"Baby, can I come over?" Roger asked as Brianna answered the phone.

"Roger, what's the matter?" she asked sitting up in her bed.

"My dad. Can I come over, please? I need to see you." he said sniffling in the phone.

"Yeah, of course you can." she said rubbing her eyes.

"I'll be right there. I love you." he told her starting to cry again.

"I love you too Roger." she said jumping out of bed as he hung up the phone. She got out of bed and rushed downstairs. Things had been getting pretty bad between Roger and his parents lately. Especially his dad. His dad had started drinking a lot and using Roger as a punching bag. She watched out the door for Roger to arrive. When she saw him she ran outside. "Oh my God Roger. Come here." she said taking one look at him before wrapping her arms around him. "What happened to you?" she asked leading him into the house.

"My dad came home drunk and I heard him yelling at my mom from my room. So I went down to see what all the yelling was about and he raised his hand to hit her and I ran down to get in the middle and he started whaling on me." he said crying as he sat on the couch.

"Oh my God, Roger. We have to do something. He can't keep doing this to you." she said crying with him.

"I'm OK. Just as long as he doesn't hit my mom or my sister, I can take care of myself." he told her trying to smile.

"Roger, this does not look like you're taking care of yourself." she said crying harder.

"Baby, I'm OK. Really. They're only bruises. They'll go away." he said taking her face in his hands.

"I hate seeing you like this." she said getting up to walk around the room.

"Brie, I'm fine. Really." he told her getting up and wrapping his arms around her.

"I wish I could take care of you. No one would ever hurt you again. I wouldn't let them." she said looking up at him.

"I know Baby." he said holding her tight in his arms.

"Roger, I love you so much." she said as he smiled at her.

"I love you too so much too Brie." he said leaning down to kiss her. She reached up and ran her fingers through his hair. He swept her in closer and their kiss turned from tender to deep and passionate.

"Roger." Brianna whispered before taking his hand and leading him upstairs to her room.

"Brie, we don't have to." he said as she closed the door to her room.

"I want to Roger." she said as she led him over to her bed.

"I love you Brianna." he whispered as they laid down on the bed.

"I know, I love you too Roger." she said beginning to take her pajamas off. As they began to make love, it was the first time for both of them. It was awkward, but beautiful. As they lay in each other's arms they fell asleep. Before they knew it, it was morning. Mrs. McGowan entered the house and went in to check on her daughters. Bethany was sound asleep in her room, clutching her teddy bear. When she opened the door to Brianna's room, she was stunned by what she found.

"Brianna Michelle McGowan." she called out which woke the both of them up.

"Um mom." she said pulling the sheet up to cover her chest.

"What the hell is going on?" she asked as Roger just lay there stunned.

"Let me explain, mom." Brianna said looking down at Roger.

"Get dressed right now. Both of you. I want to talk to you downstairs." Mrs. McGowan said closing the door to Brianna's room.

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry Baby. I didn't mean to fall asleep." Roger said looking up at her.

"That's OK. I'm glad I got to wake up to you. Even if my mom had to walk in on us." she said smiling down at him.

"Good morning Baby." he said leaning up to kiss her.

"Good morning." she said kissing him back. "Come on, we should get dressed. If we leave my mom waiting, I'm afraid she'll come in here with a chain saw." she said looking down at him.

"Yeah, we have to face the music." he said starting to get dressed.

"Whatever happens, I don't regret what happened last night. I love you Roger." she said looking up at him.

"Me neither Brie. I love you too." he told her taking her face in his hands and leaning down to kiss her.

"We better go downstairs now." she whispered smiling up at him.

"OK." he told her before turning to leave the room.


	7. Chapter 7

"How long has this been going on?" Mrs. McGowan asked as they entered the kitchen.

"It just happened last night mom. Roger got into a fight with his dad and he needed somewhere to go, so I told him to come here and it just sort of happened." Brianna explained as Roger stood behind her with his hands behind his back.

"It just sort of happened? How does having sex just sort of happen?" she asked looking up at them.

"It did. But we wanted it to happen mom. We've been dating for over a year and we're in love." Brianna told her getting flustered.

"You're in love? You're only 16, how could you know you're in love?" she asked looking up at them.

"I love Brianna, Mrs. McGowan. I really do." Roger told her quietly as Mrs. McGowan got up from the table.

"Roger, I understand you think you love her, but you two are young and don't know what you really want." she said looking at them.

"Roger, why don't you go home? I'll call you later, OK? I promise." Brianna said turning to look at him.

"Are you sure you're OK?" he asked quietly.

"I'm fine, really. I'll talk to you later. Just take care of yourself, OK?" she said kissing him goodbye before he left.

"Brianna, are you looking to throw your life away for him?" Mrs. McGowan asked looking at her.

"I'm not throwing my life away mom. I love him and he loves me." Brianna said turning to her mother.

"What are you thinking? Having sex with him in this house with your sister in the next room?" she asked pacing the kitchen.

"Mom, Bethany is asleep. And she has been all night. Everything's fine mom. You know I would never do anything to hurt Bethany. But I love Roger. And he loves me." she told her looking down.

"Love has nothing to do with anything. I loved your father and look what I had to put up with." Mrs. McGowan told her as Brianna looked up at her.

"Mom, I told you. Roger is not dad. He would never cheat on me or treat me the way dad treated you." Brianna yelled at her.

"Yeah well, I don't think you and Roger should see each other anymore." she said with her hand on her hip.

"You can't be serious? Why are you punishing me for what dad did to you?" she asked before running up to her room.

"Oh, I couldn't be more serious young lady. I'm not gonna have you throw your life away for Roger Davis." Mrs. McGowan yelled up the stairs as the phone rang.

"Roger." she asked answering the phone.

"No sweetie, it's me." Sam said quietly.

"Sammie, can I call you later? I really need to talk to Roger right now." she said crying softly.

"Sweetie, it's about Roger. He's in the emergency room." Sam told her holding back tears.

"Oh my God, what happened?" Brianna asked trying to calm down.

"His dad beat him up because he stayed out all night and wouldn't tell him where he was." she told her breaking down.

"I'll be right there." she said hanging up the phone before getting dressed and sneaking out of the house.

"Oh thank God, Brie." Mark said as Brianna rushed into the emergency room.

"Where is he? I need to see him." she said looking around.

"Hold on sweetie, him and his mom are in with the doctor now. They don't know how bad it is." Sam said hugging her.

"I wonder where he was last night." Mark said watching the girls.

"He was with me last night. His dad beat him up and he had no where to go so he came to my house and spent the night." she told them crying into Sam's shoulder.

"No wonder why he wouldn't tell his dad where he was." Mark said as Mrs. Davis came out.

"How is he?" Brianna asked running over to her.

"He's gonna be OK. He has a couple of broken ribs and a broken arm. I can't believe Allan did this to him." she said crying into her hands.

"I have to see him Mrs. Davis." she said looking up at her.

"He's been asking about you too dear. You can go in, but just for a little while. He needs his rest." she said looking at her as she rushed back to the rooms calling his name quietly.

"Roger, are you here?" she asked looking around.

"Brie, oh my God. Brie." he called out as she rushed behind the curtain.

"Oh my God Roger. I can't believe he did this to you." she cried looking down at him.

"Baby, please don't cry. I'm gonna be OK." he told her holding his good arm out to her.

"Roger, he put you in the hospital and broke your ribs and your arm. Roger we have to do something." she said going to him.

"Baby, I'm gonna be OK. I promise." he said kissing her head.

"Yeah until he finally kills you." she cried into his shoulder.

"He's not gonna kill me Brie. I'll be OK." he told her caressing her hair.

"Why didn't you tell him where you were last night?" she asked looking up at him.

"Because I don't want him anywhere near you. I love you too much to let him hurt you." he whispered as tears rolled down his face.

"I love you too Roger." she whispered kissing his head.


	8. Chapter 8

"Come on sweetie, be careful. I got you." Brianna said holding on to Roger after he was released from the hospital.

"I'm OK Brie." he told her looking down at her.

"I wanna take care of you." she said looking up at him. "I'm just glad your mom is letting you stay at Mark's until she gets your dad out." she told him taking Roger to Mark's room.

"Me too. I'll be closer to my girl." he said smiling down at her.

"Yeah, well for now you should be taking care of yourself and healing. You'll be playing your guitar again in no time." she said helping him into the bed.

"I don't care about playing my guitar. All I care about is holding my baby in my arms again." he said kissing her.

"Roger, you should care about playing your guitar. You're really good. I just hope you don't lose your voice from not using it." she told him smiling at him.

"Well I don't. All I care about is you." he said getting comfortable.

"Roger, what are we gonna do? You can't go back there if he's still there." she said sitting on Mark's bed with him.

"I'm not going back there if he's still there. I'll run away if I have to." he told her putting his good arm around her.

"Where are you gonna go?" she asked looking over at him.

"I don't know Baby. I'm just not gonna go back if he's there." he told her as tears stung his eyes.

"I know." she said trying to hold him with out hurting his ribs.

"I don't want to talk about right now Baby, OK?" he said wiping is eyes.

"Roger, you know I love you, right?" she asked looking over at him.

"Of course I do. Why would you ask me that?" he asked looking at her.

"My mom doesn't want us to see each other anymore." she said starting to cry.

"It's because we had sex the other night, right?" he asked as she sat up.

"Yeah, she doesn't want me to throw my life away on you like she did with my dad. I told her you're not my dad and you would never hurt me or treat me like my dad did to her, but she doesn't listen. I told her you love me, but she doesn't believe that we're old enough to know that we're in love. But we are." she told him crying more.

"Baby, it's OK. We'll think of something. I promise." he said kissing her head.

"Roger, I love you." she said leaning in to him.

"I love you too Brie. Don't worry. Everything is gonna be OK." he said holding her with his good arm as she cried.

"Rog, your mom's here." Mark said quietly entering the room.

"I should go. My mom thinks I'm at Sammie's. I'll call you later." she said leaning over to kiss him.

"Hey, I love you Brie. I really do." he said smiling at her.

"I love you too Roger." she said kissing him again before rushing out of the room. Past Mark and past Mrs. Davis.

"Hey mom." Roger said wiping his eyes.

"Hi sweetie. How do you feel?" she asked sitting on the foot of the bed.

"I'm in pain, but I'm OK." he said shifting his arm.

"Is everything OK with Brianna?" she asked quietly as Roger looked away from her.

"Yeah mom, everything is fine with me and Brie, but I doubt you came over here to ask me how things are between me and my girlfriend. What do you want?" he asked looking up at her.

"Your dad is really sorry he did this. He wants to make it up to you." she said looking over at him.

"There's only one way he can make it up to me and that's to drop dead." Roger started to yell but groaned in pain holding his ribs.

"Roger, you're not being fair. I think he really wants to try this time. He said he would stop drinking." she said smiling over at him.

"Mom, he put me in the hospital and broke my arm and 3 ribs. I don't care if he really wants to try this time. He should be in jail for what he did to me." Roger said quietly looking at his mother.

"Roger, you love Brianna, right?" she asked as tears came to her eyes.

"You better not be trying to say that you and dad have the same thing as me and Brie. Because it is not remotely the same thing. I would never get drunk and slap Brie around. Ever." he told her trying to get comfortable.

"I love your father Roger. I owe it to him to give him another chance." she said as tears fell from her eyes.

"What about me? What do you owe me? I'm your son, mom." he asked looking at her hurt and confused.

"Roger, when you get better, I hope you'll come home. But Mrs. Cohen said you could stay here as long as you need." she told him getting up as she wiped her eyes.

"Mom, don't do this." he said looking up at her.

"I love you Roger. I'll see you soon. Say hi to Brianna for me." she said walking to the door.

"Don't ever say her name again. Brianna loves me and I love her. We would never hurt each other the way you and dad do." he said as she continued to walk out of the room. "Mark." he yelled before crying in pain again.

"What happened?" Mark asked rushing into his room.

"Can you call Brianna please? I need her." he said hiding the fact that he was crying.

"How come you can't call her?" Mark asked quietly looking over at him.

"Her mom doesn't want us to see each other anymore. Ever since the night I spent over there." he said wiping his eyes.

"OK." Mark said picking up the phone that was on the bedside table to call Brianna. "Hi Brianna, it's Mark." he said into the phone.

"Oh my God Mark. Is Roger OK?" she asked getting worried.

"Yeah, he just wants to talk to you." he said handing the phone to Roger.

"Can I have some privacy, Mark?" Roger asked holding the phone.

"Sure." he told him leaving the room.

"Brie. Can you sneak out? I need to see you Baby." he asked starting to cry.

"Roger, what happened with your mom?" she asked holding back her own tears.

"I'll tell you when you get here. Please Baby, come over to Mark's." he begged wiping his tears.

"OK, I'll be right there. Hang on Roger, I'm coming." she said hanging up the phone and leaving her house. Her mother and sister weren't home, so it was easy for her to leave. When she got to Mark's house he was waiting outside for her. "Mark, what happened? Is he OK?" she asked as he brought her upstairs.

"I don't know. His mom came in, talked to him and then he wanted you." he said worried about Roger.

"Thanks Mark." she said going into his room. Roger was laying in the bed. When he saw Brianna enter the room he started to cry again. "Oh my God Roger. What happened?" she asked rushing to him.

"She's taking him back Brie. He put me in the damn hospital and she's giving him another chance." he cried as she held him in her arms.

"I'm so sorry Baby." she whispered crying with him.

"I wanna run away Brie. Just you and me. Let's run away." he said wiping his eyes looking up at her.

"Do you really want to do it? Run away?" she asked looking down at him.

"Yeah, why not? I mean, my parents don't give a damn about me and your mom won't let us see each other, so why not?" he asked looking up at her.

"You're right. Let's do it." she said as he started smiling at her.

"Yeah?" he asked holding her face with his good hand.

"Yeah. I love you Roger." she said leaning down to kiss him.

"I love you too Brie. We can go as soon as my ribs are better." he told her kissing her again.

"OK that's best." she said caressing his cheek as they laid in Mark's bed together and made their plans to run away.


	9. Chapter 9

"Hey Mark. Is Roger upstairs?" Brianna asked entering the Cohen residence.

"Yeah he's taking a nap." he told her as she went up the stairs.

"Thanks." she said opening the door quietly. She closed the door behind her and just started at him. He looked so peaceful. She just stood by the door and cried. As she folded her arms across her stomach she slid down the door.

"Brie. Baby, what's the matter?" he asked looking over at her. It had been a month since his father broke his ribs so he could move a little better. He got out of the bed and went to her.

"Roger, what am I gonna do?" she cried as he sat on the floor in front of her.

"About what Baby? Talk to me. What's the matter?" he asked holding her face with his good hand.

"I'm pregnant Roger." she told him looking up with her face stained with tears.

"A baby?" he asked quietly as tears welled up in his eyes. "Are you sure?" he asked holding her close to him.

"Yeah, I took a test. It was positive." she cried into his shoulder as he kissed her head.

"It's OK Brie. We'll get through this. I love you Baby." he whispered to her caressing her hair.

"I love you too Roger." she told him continuing to cry into his shoulder.

"Baby, everything is gonna be OK. I promise. I'm not gonna leave you." he whispering kissing her head.

"My mom is never gonna let me keep the baby, Roger." she told him crying.

"We're running away remember. She'll have nothing to say about it. We'll be gone." he said lifting her chin with his hand.

"Are you sure we can do it?" she asked sniffling.

"Baby, we can do anything as long as we're together." he told her leaning in to kiss her.

"Why is it when I'm thinking about things they seem so impossible but when you say the same thing I feel like nothing can ruin it?" she asked looking up at him.

"Because our love can get us through anything." he told her wiping her tears from her face.

"We're gonna have a baby, Roger." she said starting to smile at him.

"Yeah we are Baby." he said leaning in to kiss her.

"You're cast should be off in a couple of weeks, so we could leave then." she said as they got up.

"What about money?" he asked looking at her.

"I sold a couple of my plays to the community theater. I got almost 500. and I have a necklace my dad gave me for my 13th birthday." she told him sitting on the bed.

"I can't let you do that Baby." he said with his arm around her shoulders.

"I want to. I haven't seen or heard from my dad in 2 years. I wanna sell it for our new life together." she said smiling at him.

"I'm gonna sell my guitar." he told her kissing her head.

"I am so not letting you do that. Roger you are too talented to sell your guitar. You're gonna need something to play if you're gonna be a rock star." she told him caressing his face.

"It's not important. I just want to have a life with my girl and our baby." he said kissing her head before touching her stomach.

"Are we gonna tell Mark and Sammie?" she asked looking up at him.

"I don't know yet. I kind of like it just being us for now." he said kneeling in front of her to put his ear to her stomach. "Hi my little girl." he said smiling up at her.

"How do you know it's gonna be a girl?" she asked smiling down at him.

"Just a hunch." he said kissing her flat belly.

"I love you so much Roger." she said playing with his hair.

"I love you so much too Brie." he said getting up and kissing her as he caressed her cheek.

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"Mark, Sammie we have something we have to tell you." Roger said holding Brianna's hand sitting on Mark's bed.

"What's the matter you guys?" Sam asked looking up at them.

"Brie's pregnant and we're running away." Roger said as Sam's eyes filled with tears.

"Where are you guys gonna go? What are you gonna do?" she asked looking up at them.

"We're gonna go to the city. We can get jobs and get a small apartment." Brianna told them smiling up at Roger.

"We're gonna be OK. It's just that my mom is staying with my dad and I can't move back in there with him and Brie's mom wants us to stop seeing each other and she's gonna make us give the baby up and we don't want to." Roger said holding Brianna's hand tight.

"If you guys need anything, promise you'l call us." Mark told them trying to smiling at them.

"We will Mark. Thank you." Brianna said getting up to hug him and Sam.

"When are you guys going?" Sam asked wiping her tears from her eyes.

"Tonight. Bethany is gonna be at my aunt's house and my mom's working, so she won't know until tomorrow." Brianna told her as tears formed in her eyes.

"I know you're gonna miss her Baby. But once we have the baby and turn 18 we can come back and visit her." Roger said putting his arms around her holding her close.

"I know." she said burying her face in his chest.


	10. Chapter 10

"Are you scared?" Roger asked as they got on the bus.

"Terrified. You?" she asked looking up at him.

"Nope." he said smiling at her.

"How could you not be scared?" she asked looking up at him.

"Brie, I love you. I wanna spend the rest of my life with you." he told her putting his arms around her.

"I love you too Roger." she said as the bus pulled out taking the two 16 years olds from Scarsdale to New York City. "I'm so tired." she told him looking up at him.

"So go to sleep Baby. When you wake up we'll be in New York City." he said kissing her head.

"OK." she said smiling up at him before laying her head on his chest and falling asleep. Roger thought about what they were gonna do. He wanted to rent a studio apartment and and get a job so he could take care of Brianna and their baby. He didn't want to end up like his dad who was miserable and blamed his family for his problems. He loved Brianna too much to turn into his father. He was gonna take care of Brianna and their baby. When they pulled into the city, Roger looked up at all of the buildings. This was wear he was gonna make it big and take care of his family. Brianna wouldn't let him sell his guitar because she wanted him to be able to play his music.

"Brie Baby. We're almost there." he whispered caressing her face.

"Mmm Roger, we're here?" she asked looking up at him. The sun was just coming up.

"Almost Baby." he said smiling down at her.

"Look at it. It looks so beautiful." she said sitting up.

"Yeah it does. And big. No one will ever find us here." he told her kissing her head.

"Except Mark and Sammie. We have to call them when we find a place and let them know where we are." she said looking up at him.

"We'll call them as soon as can." he said smiling down at her.

"OK." she said smiling up at him. As the bus pulled into port authority, they got up to get off the bus. Roger got their bags from the outer compartment and they bought a newspaper to look for an apartment. They had planned on spending a night or so in a cheap motel until they found a place.

"Are you ready Baby?" he asked putting his arm around her as he slung the bags over his shoulder with the other.

"Yeah, I'm ready." she said looking up at him. She was obviously scared.

"Baby, I'm gonna take care of you and the baby, I promise." he told her holding her close.

"I know." she said trying to smile up at him.

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"What do you think?" Roger asked looking down at Brianna as they looked at a studio apartment.

"Well it's not much, but it's all we could afford." she told him looking around.

"We can keep looking if you want." he said looking around.

"No, I want it." she said looking up at him.

"OK so we'll take it." he said smiling down at her as he kissed her head.

"Yeah. Oh my God, we have our own place." Brianna said smiling up at Roger.

"Yeah we do." he said leaning down to kiss her. As they gave the landlord first and last months rent they talked about things they were gonna need for their apartment. Luckily the apartment came partially furnished, so they didn't need much. It was a small basement apartment with a bathroom and kitchen living room combo. It wasn't much, but it would do for the time being. Roger had gotten a job as a messenger and his boss was nice enough to let him use his bike and Brianna had gotten a job as a waitress in a little diner around the corner from the messenger service.

"I think we should call Mark and Sammie and let them know we're OK." she said as they left the apartment to get their stuff from the motel.

"OK Baby. We can do it now." he said sweeping her into his arms. "I love you Brie." he said smiling down at her.

"I love you too Roger. I just hope you still love me when I'm big as a house." she said laughing as he leaned down to kiss her.

"Of course I'll still love you. You're carrying my baby." he told her holding her tight.

"Oh my God, I'm carrying your baby." she said excitedly allowing it to sink in for the first time in a month. When they were still in Scarsdale, they had to be careful. They had to sneak around to see each other and she had to be careful not to tip anyone off. If her mother found out she was pregnant, she would make Brianna give the baby up and she loved Roger too much to giver their baby up.

"Yeah you are." he said smiling at her as he put his hand on her stomach for the first time in public. It was still flat, but they knew it wouldn't stay that way for long.

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"Mark, Sammie how did you guys get away?" Brianna asked as Mark and Sammie entered the apartment.

"We told our parents we were going on a school trip in the city. You got so big." Sam said hugging Brianna who was now 6 months pregnant.

"Gee thanks." she said sitting slowly back on the couch.

"This is a cool place you guys." Mark said looking around.

"It's not much, but it's home." she said smiling up at him.

"Where's Roger?" Sam asked sitting next to her.

"He's at work. As usual." she said caressing her belly.

"Is everything OK Brie?" Sam asked looking at her.

"Yeah, I mean, I can't work too many hours because my ankle get so swollen so Roger picks up extra shifts and he's barely home. I miss him, you know?" she asked starting to cry.

"Brie, your mom is really worried about you guys. I'm sure if you told her you ran away because you're pregnant and you and Roger want to be a family, she'll understand." Sam told her hugging her friend.

"No. I can't. She'll make me and Roger give the baby up and then she'll never let us be together. No. we can do it. Roger's just working a lot so I don't have to. We'll be OK. Once the baby's born I can start working again and he'll be spending more time with us. He loves us." Brianna told her wiping her eyes.

"Honey, you doing know that that's what your mom would do." Sam said quietly.

"Yes I do Sammie. And you can't tell her where we are. Please Sammie. You promised you wouldn't." Brianna told her getting up.

"I won't tell her Brie, but this is no life for you and Roger. Or your baby." Sam told her as Mark looked on.

"Sammie, this is the only life we can have. At least until we're 18 and we can get married. Then my mom can't make us give the baby up." she told her wiping her eyes.

"I know Brie, but I'm just worried about you guys." she said as Mark sat in the corner equally as worried.


	11. Chapter 11

"Roger, it hurts so bad." Brianna cried as she clutched her stomach.

"I know Baby. Just hang on, we're going to the hospital now." he said holding her tight as he hailed a cab.

"Make it stop Roger." she cried doubling over in pain.

"I wish I could Baby, I really do." he said as they got in the cab. "The hospital. Now. She's having a baby." he told the cab driver as he held Brianna in his arms. "Just breathe Baby, OK." he told her kissing her head. He was scared to death. He had never seen anyone in so much pain. He was worried there was something wrong with the Brianna and the baby.

"Of course I'm gonna breathe. What kind of thing is that to tell me? Like I'm gonna forget to damn breathe." she yelled holding her stomach.

"You're right Baby, I'm sorry. I don't know what I was thinking." he said confused as the cab pulled up in front of the hospital. Roger threw money at the driver and they got out.

"Roger, it hurts." she yelled almost falling to the ground.

"I'm sorry Brie. I really am. Come on." he told her holding her up. "Woman having a baby." he yelled as they entered the emergency room.

"What's her name?" the nurse at the desk asked looking at them.

"Brianna Davis." he said out of instinct.

"How far along is she?" the nurse asked writing her name down.

"Does it matter? I'm here." Brianna yelled as Roger held her in his arms.

"She's 9 months pregnant and the baby's coming." he told her trying to calm Brianna down.

"How old are you two?" the nurse asked looking at them.

"We're 18 and she's my wife. Can you just please help her? She's in a lot of pain." Roger asked getting upset.

"OK, right this way." the nurse said bringing a wheelchair to them and bringing them up to labor and delivery.

"Thank you. Thank you so much." Roger said relieved.

"Don't thank me yet, sir. You have to stay here and fill out these papers. We'll get your wife settled in and you can come up when you're done." she said handing him the clip board.

"Roger, don't leave me." Brianna cried reaching out for him.

"I'll be right there Baby, I promise." he told her as they wheeled her up.

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"She's beautiful Brie." Roger said quietly caressing Brianna's face.

"She sure is. What should we name her?" she asked looking up at him.

"How about Faith, Hope or Charity?" he asked handing her a small gold claddagh ring.

"Oh my God. Roger, this is beautiful. How could we afford it?" she asked looking down at it.

"I saved up some tips and got a good deal." he said slipping it on the ring finger on her left hand.

"I love you Roger." she said kissing him.

"I love you too Brie. So what do you think?" he asked smiling at her and his daughter.

"How about Hope. Hope Bethany Davis." Brianna suggested as a tear fell from Roger's eye.

"I love it. Hi my little Hope. I am your daddy and I'm gonna love you forever. Just like your mommy." he said caressing the baby's cheek.

"Can you believe we have a daughter?" Brianna asked smiling up at Roger.

"I know. It's weird. One minute she was in there and the next she's right here. With 10 little fingers and 10 litte toes and the cutest button nose." he told her as the baby slept in Brianna's arms.

"We are gonna take care of you so well my little Hope. I promise." Brianna said kissing Hope's head.

"Can I hold my little munchkin?" Roger asked smiling down at her.

"Of course you can. Here you go daddy's little girl." Brianna said as Roger reached out for her.

"She is so little." he said holding her in his arms.

"Roger, she's a new born. Of course she's little." Brianna told him laughing.

"I can't believe we made her." he said quietly as he looked down at Hope in disbelief.

"We did." she said watching them.

"I love you so much my girls." he said kissing Brianna then kissing Hope on the forehead.

"We love you too Roger." Brianna said smiling at him as she laid back and relaxed.

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"Mark, what are we gonna do? We can't leave Roger and Brianna in that crappy apartment with a new born baby." Sam said sitting in Mark's room with him.

"Sammie, this is what they want. All they want to do is raise the baby there until they're 18 and then they'll come home." Mark said hugging her.

"I'm just really worried." Sam said hugging him back.

"I know Baby. I know." he told her as Cindy listened at the door. Mrs. McGowan, Mrs. Davis and Mrs. Cohen had been worried sick about the kids and Mark and Sam told them they didn't know anything, but Cindy knew better. When Mark and Sam went out, Cindy did some detective work. She went through Mark's desk and found an address in New York City. She assumed it was Roger and Brianna's.


	12. Chapter 12

"Brianna Michelle McGowan, are you in here?" Mrs. McGowan yelled knocking on the door of the apartment.

"Oh my God. Roger, she found us." Brianna said sitting up in bed.

"How?" he asked reaching out to the bassinette for the baby, who had started crying.

"I don't know. But we can't ignore her. She can hear Hope crying." Brianna said getting upset.

"I can hear you in there. Open this door right now." she yelled pounding on the door again.

"I'll get it." Roger said handing Hope to Brianna.

"Roger." she said grabbing his arm.

"I love you too Brie." he said kissing her before opening the door.

"What are you two doing? We have been worried sick about you." Mrs. McGowan asked entering the apartment.

"Mom, we're fine. See." Brianna told her getting out of the bed holding the 4 month old in her arms.

"What is this? He got you pregnant?" she asked looking at the baby.

"No mom, he didn't get me pregnant. We got pregnant and we got a beautiful baby girl. Her name is Hope by the way." Brianna told her patting the baby's back.

"Get dressed Brianna. We're going home." Mrs. McGowan ordered as she reached out for the baby.

"You're not getting my baby mom. Hope is mine and Roger's child and you're not taking her away from us." Brianna told her moving away from her as Roger stood between them.

"You two are not old enough to take care of a baby." she insisted looking at them.

"Well we've been doing it and we want to keep on doing it." Roger told her wrapping his arms around Brianna and Hope.

"How have you been taking care of her. You're 17 years old and live in a dump. You call this taking care of her? Get your things and you can come home and we can help you take care of her." Mrs. McGowan said moving back.

"Why? So you can make me break up with Roger and take our baby away from us? No. I'm not going home. This is my home, mom." Brianna said beginning to cry.

"I'm not gonna take your baby away Brianna. I just want you and Hope safe." she said looking at them.

"And what about Roger, mom. He is Hope's father. Do you want him safe too?" she asked looking up at Roger.

"Of course I want Roger safe. You're in love with him and now I see that trying to keep you two apart was a mistake. You found a way to be together anyway and you have this beautiful little girl because of our love. I get it. I just want you two to come home. Please." she said looking up at them.

"If we do come home, are you gonna try to keep us apart?" Brianna asked wiping her eyes as she handed Hope to Roger.

"No. I just want you home." she said smiling at her.

"Baby, we should go. This isn't the life I want for you and Hope." Roger whispered turning his back to Mrs. McGowan.

"But Roger, you know how she is." Brianna argued quietly.

"Brie, think about this. We can go back to school and get better jobs when we graduate. Then we can give Hope a better life." he told her bouncing Hope in his arms.

"But Roger..." she argued taking Hope out of his arms.

"Brie, I love you and Hope. You know I do. But this is not the life I want for you." he told her as she walked away from him.

"But we're a family. You know she's not gonna let us be a family if we go home." Brianna told him as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"Brie, I just want what's best for my family and going home is what's best right now." Roger said walking over to her.

"Brianna listen to Roger. He's being sensable." Mrs. McGowan said appoaching them.

"Mom, this is not your decision to make. This is between me and my fiance." Brianna said walking away from them both.

"Baby, please. Think about Hope. We can't raise her in this dump and if we don't go home and finish school, we'll never be able to give her any more than this." Roger told her following her.

"I don't trust her Roger." Brianna said looking at his mother.

"You don't have to trust her Brie. All you have to do is what's best for our little girl." Roger said taking her face in his hands.

"Fine. But mom, Roger and I are getting married when we turn 18 whether you like it or not." Brianna told her mother as Mrs. McGowan let out a sigh of relief.

"That's fine Brianna. Once you turn 18 you can do whatever you want. But for right now, I have to do what's best for my little girl." she said as Roger leaned down to kiss Brianna and Hope.

"I love you Brianna. You go with your mom and I'll see you tomorrow. I just need to take care of a couple of things with work and then I'll be home. I promise." he said wrapping his arms around Brianna and Hope.

"You're not coming with us?" Brianna asked scared.

"I have to return the bike and pick up my last pay check. I'll be home, I promise. I'll be fine." he told her kissing her.

"I love you Roger." she said as tears fell from her eyes.

"I love you too Brie." he told her caressing her cheek.


	13. Chapter 13

"How could you do this to us Sammie?" Brianna cried looking at her best friend.

"I didn't tell her. I swear." Sam insisted with Mark at her side.

"Oh come on Sam, you have been wanting me and Roger to come home since you saw our apartment. I'm supposed to believe that you didn't rat us out to my mom?" she asked bouncing Holly in her arms.

"I swear Brie, I didn't tell anyone. It was just me and Mark who knew." she told her getting up.

"Brie, you know we would never rat you and Roger out. You guys are our best friends. We just wanted you guys to be happy. And you guys were happy in the city." Mark said defending his girlfriend.

"Then how did my mom find us, huh?" Brianna asked caressing Hope's back.

"We don't know Brie. But it wasn't us." Mark told her as Sam cried.

"So my mom just got lucky, huh? I doubt it." Brianna said putting Hope down.

"Maybe she traced you guys through the hospital or something." Sam told her wiping her eyes.

"We gave them a phony address. But she found our exact address. Just go." Brianna said turning to go in the kitchen.

"But Brie..." Sam started before Brianna interrupted her.

"I said go." Brianna told them turning her back on them.

"I can't believe she thinks we would rat her out." Sam said crying into Mark's shoulder as they left the McGowan house.

"I want to know how Mrs. McGowan knew." Mark said looking down at her.

"Me too because they cost me a best friend." Sam told him as they walked down the street.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Roger, can I talk to you for a minute, please?" Mrs. McGowan asked as Roger watched Hope sleep in the bassinette next to Brianna's bed. Ever since they returned home, Roger's been going to school and work during the day and Brianna was going to school at night. Mrs. McGowan had let Roger move in with them. It was a stipulation on Brianna returning home. She insisted her family not be seperated.

"Sure." he said quietly as he left the room, closing the door behind him.

"Listen Roger, you are doing really great. I mean, you're great with Brianna and Hope, you're doing good in school and you're working." Mrs. McGowan started as they went downstairs.

"Thank you Mrs. McGowan." he said sitting on the couch.

"You know Roger, you're good with your family now, but what about when you get older and the stress gets to you?" she asked looking down at him.

"What are you getting at Mrs. McGowan?" he asked becoming impatient.

"OK, I'll cut to the chase. You love your family now, but what about the day you become like your father? Abusive and a drunk?" she asked putting her hand on her hip.

"That will never happen. I will never be like him. I would never hurt Brianna and Hope." he told her standing up.

"But how do you know that? Do you really want to find out?" she asked looking up at him.

"Roger, you're working at a garage right now. How much money could you possibly make in your lifetime? Don't you think that would cause some stress on you and your family after a while?" she asked looking up at him.

"I love my family Mrs. McGowan. I'll do anything for them." he told her walking away from her.

"So let them go, before you hurt them." she suggested turning around to face her.

"You can't be serious." he asked looking up at her.

"Roger, if you're willing to do anything for your family. Let them go before you turn into the man your father is. For them. I'll take care of them for you. All you have to do is break up with Brianna and walk away from her and your daughter." she said as he sat back down on the couch.

"I love them so much Mrs. McGowan. They're my life." he told her putting his head in his hands.

"So think about what's best for your girls Roger. Be a responsible man." she said before leaving the room.

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"Roger, what do you mean you can't do this anymore? We're a family." Brianna told him crying.

"Brianna, I'm sorry. I just can't. You and Hope would be better off without me. I don't want Hope to have the father I had and I don't want to be that kind of husband to you." he argued standing over her.

"Roger, you're not gonna be like him. You love us. We could never be better off without you." she said pacing around the room.

"But Brie..." he started before she interrupted him.

"No, now Roger we're getting married soon and we'll have enough to get our own place." she yelled standing over him.

"Brie, it's not about that. I love you and Hope and I don't want to turn into the prick my father is." he told her standing up.

"You could never be like him Roger. You would never hurt me or Hope the way he hurts you or your mom." she said looking up at him.

"We don't know that Brie and I don't want to take that chance. I'm sorry." he said turning to leave the house.

"Roger, where are you going?" she yelled following him to the door. He kept going. He never turned around. He couldn't. If he did Brianna would have seen how much this was killing him inside. Mrs. McGowan just stood in the kitchen smiling.

I needed to include this song. It was pointed out to me by BohemianGirl06 that this is the perfect Roger/Brie song. I know this song didn't come out until 1998, but it's perfect. It's 98 Degrees The Hardest Thing from 98 Degree and Rising. I am a BSB and N'Sync fan myself, but this is an amazing song whose lyrics got to me the second BohemianGirl06 sent them to me.

We both know that I shouldn't be here  
This is wrong  
And baby its killing me, its killing you  
Both of us trying to be strong  
I've got somewhere else to be  
Promises to keep  
Someone else who loves me  
And trusts me fast asleep  
I've made up my mind  
There is no turning back  
She's been good to me  
And she deserves better than that

Chorus:  
It's the hardest thing  
I'll ever have to do  
To look you in the eye  
And tell you I dont love you  
It's the hardest thing  
I'll ever have to lie  
To show no emotion  
When you start to cry  
I can't let you see  
What you mean to me  
When my hands are tied  
And my hearts not free  
We're not meant to be  
It's the hardest thing  
I'll ever had to do  
To turn around and walk away  
Pretending I don't love you

I know that well meet again  
Fate has a place and time  
So you can get on with your life  
I've got to be cruel to be kind  
Like dr. zhivago  
All my love Ill be sending  
And you will never know  
There can be no happy ending

Chorus

Maybe another time, another day  
As much as I want to, I can't stay  
(ooh)  
I've made up my mind  
There is no turning back  
She's been good to me  
And she deserves better than that

Chorus

I don't want to live a lie  
What can I do

That is the end of I'll Cover You. What happens next is well known. It is documented in the Broadway play and the Movie. The sequel to this will be up later. It's called I'll Cover You Reprise.


End file.
